Animation Parenting

[bruce southerland]

I have a foreground video clip that I have parented two still photos to--a mediumground
element and a background sky. Is there a way to keep the motion on the same parent path
with the video, while scaling down the distance the elements actually travel? I want the sky
to move on the same path, but since it's far away, i don't want it to move as much.

 

[Finn Yarbrough]

It sounds like you should copy and paste the path rather than parenting, in this case.

 

[Michael Carter]

Essentially you want the sky's movement to be appear to be affected by parallax, correct? Distant objects move slower than closer).

I think the best way to do this is with a 3D camera (in After Effects or anything with cameras). Actually move the sky layer farther away from the camera, and scale as needed. This way, the movement is computed naturally, based on distance. You can control the varying movement by distance, and it will look natural with no guesswork.

Items can be parented for movement this way, and you will get the variance in motion speed from the distance.

Here's a demo I made a while back:

 

[Finn Yarbrough]

Well, yeah, if you want the algorithm to do all the work FOR you...
; )
Michael's right, his way is better. It's a little tricky to get the hang of properly creating a virtual camera or null object to slave to, but some tutorials should sort you out. Good luck!

 

[DPStewart]

Essentially you want the sky's movement to be appear to be affected by parallax, correct? Distant objects move slower than closer).

I think the best way to do this is with a 3D camera (in After Effects or anything with cameras). Actually move the sky layer farther away from the camera, and scale as needed. This way, the movement is computed naturally, based on distance. You can control the varying movement by distance, and it will look natural with no guesswork.

Items can be parented for movement this way, and you will get the variance in motion speed from the distance.

Here's a demo I made a while back:

Wow. Great video man.

You gotz one smooooth V.O. voice!